Electrochemical chlorine generators are available from a number of commercial sources for use in establishing and maintaining bactericidal levels of chlorine ions in swimming pools. The terms “chlorine” “sodium hypochlonte” and “chlorine ions” are used interchangeably herein to refer to the bactericidal ionic form. Electrochemical chlorine generators are installed in-line with the main pumping and filter system outside of the pool. These devices are relatively expensive to purchase and require the services of an experienced plumber and an electrician for their proper installation. Intermittent operation of the generator is required in order to maintain the desired concentration of chlorine. In one automated control system, a probe is immersed in the pool at a representative location in the pool and the probe electronically transmits a signal to a remote poolside controller which, in turn, controls the periodic operation of the cathodic chorine generator. The probe and controller assembly are also expensive to purchase and do require maintenance.
The use of these permanently installed electrochemical generator systems is typically limited to larger commercial and institutional pools where the convenience associated with the essentially continuously controlled introduction of chlorine ions into the pool outweighs the initial costs. These devices also eliminate the need for the purchase of chemicals and either the use of maintenance personnel or automated chemical injection systems.
The initial capital outlay for the purchase of the equipment, as well as the expenses associated with installation by plumbers and electricians, generally discourage the use of electrochemical chlorine generators for the residential pool market. However, saltwater electrochemical chlorinators do produce a highly effective bactericidal sanitizer from a mild saltwater solution that pool users generally find less objectionable than chlorine-producing chemicals typically used in residential pools.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for generating and adding chlorine to pools that is essentially self-contained and the use of which requires no installation services by a plumber and requires no separate or specialized electrical power connections for its operation.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a method and apparatus for providing the desired concentration of chlorine ions from an electrochemical generator that relies on conventional test methods used for residential pools, thereby avoiding the necessity of using expensive electronic probes and data processing and transmission control systems.
A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus and method utilizing an electrochemical chlorine generator that efficiently and effectively distributes the chlorine throughout the volume of water in the pool so as to provide a uniform concentration of the desired chlorine ions and thereby avoid the localized high concentration regions associated with the apparatus and methods of the prior art.
Another object of the invention is to provide an automated system utilizing an electrochemical chlorine generator mounted on a robotic pool cleaner, the operation of the generator being controlled by signals derived from a submerged sampling probe and transmitted either directly or indirectly via a relay receiver/transmitter to the processor/controller on board the pool cleaner.